Garment display form



Sept. 11, 1945.

N. SHAFARMAN GARMENT DISPLAY FORM Filed June 8, 1944 2 Sheets-Sheet l Sept. 11, 1945.

N. SHAFARMAN GARMENT DISPLAY FORM Filed June 8, 1944 2- Sheets -Sheet 2 NELLY}: SHAFARMAN,

Patented Sept. 11, 1945 U NIT-ED STAT ES PATENT. OFFICE GARMENT DISPLAYFORM Nellye 'Shafarman, Cleveland, "Ohio Application June 8, 1944, Serial No..539,302

14 Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in-garment display forms.

The present form is particularly designed for the display of the waist portionof vladiess-onepiece dresses, blouses, sweaters and similar ar- .ticles of apparel and the primary object is to providea display form of this type which is readily adjustable to vary the bust effect of the form.

Another object of the invention is to provide a display form of the type indicated which is preferably made-of a single sheet of material that maybe folded fiat upon itself for shipping purposes but in which the folded portionconstituting the front of th form can be deformed to produce a bust effect in said front.

Still another object is to provide a display form of the character described composed of flexible front and back members secured together atone end by laterally spaced securing elements Whereby when the standard of a form support is inserted between said front and back members at a point intermediate said fastening .means, the side edge portions of said front and back members will .be urged or flexed toward .each other whereby the fabric of the garment adjacent the waist line which has been tucked in between .Said front and backmembers will be clamped-andsecurely retained therein.

More specifically, th invention contemplates aformcut from a single sheet of flexible material such as cardboard which is folded upon itself along a medial line to produce front and back vmembers hinged together. at their folded edgeand which are securedtogether adjacent their opposite end by means which will permit a limited sliding movement of the frontmember upon the back member to compensate for the distortion of the front member in producing .the :bust effect therein. This sliding movement .of the front member on the other is limited in order that the .back member can be flexed by suitable adjusting means, to vary the spacing of the rear member and the intermediate portion of the front member to accentuate or minimize the bust efiect producedin the front member.

With these and other objects in view the invention consists incertain details of construction .and combinations and arrangements of parts, tall as will be hereinafter described and the novel fea- 'tures thereof particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawings- Figure 1 is a perspective view illustrating the waist portion of a .dresssupported'on the present form; r

Fig. 2 is .a side elevational view illustrating the waist portion of the @dress on the form;

Fig. .3 is alfront-elevational view of the ,presen form setup on a supporting standard;

Fig. 4 is-a side elevational view of the present form-with the front member deformed to .illustrate the bust effect produced therein;

Fig. 5 is a .plan view illustrating the front and back members of the form unfolded :or as they appear when first cut froma sheet of material;

Fig. 5A is .an edge view illustrating the front and back members of the form folded fiat upon one another forshipment;

Fig.6 is a transverse sectional View on th line 6-6 ,of Fig. 1;

Fig. '7 is a detail view of the .clip for the .adiusting cord by which thebusteffect of the form is varied;

Fig. 8 is a :detail perspective view illustrating the attachment --of theupper-end of the-adjusting cord to .the form;

Fig. .9 is .a perspective view illustrating a blouse displayed on'alform modified for the display'of blouses, sweater-sand similar garments; and

Fig. 10 .is a front elevational view of the form for displaying blouses, sweaters and the like.

For reasons which will appear hereinafter, the present form is rmade'of a flexible resilient material such as-cardboard and is cut from a-single sheet of such material to form front "and back members 10 and -I;l adapted to be folded flat against '.one another along the line 12 as shown in Fig. 5A. It is usually the practice .to fold the form flat in this fashion ;-for purposes of shipment. The front :and back members are substantially hinged together along the line 12 which corresponds to the middle of the shoulder line .of garments to be displayed on the form. When the form isto be placed in a garment for displaying the latter, the otherwisefree ends of the front :and backmembers .141, H are first-connected together such a fashion as to :permit a limited sliding movement of the front member I 0 .on the rear member v,l I. This may be accomplished by attaching the otherwise f-ree end-pormit a sliding movement of the front member with respect to the back member limited by the length of slots I6. This sliding movement of the front I is provided for in order to compensate for deformation of the front member when the latter is deformed to produce a bust effect therein. For instance, the front member may be cut inwardly and downwardly along the lines I I from points along its side edges substantially corresponding tothe lowermost point'of the ,armholes of garments to be displayed, these slits I1 producing what will be termed side portions l8 and lapel portions I9. The lapel portions -'I9;-.: 1 have tabs 20 struck up therefrom .so..that. by

overlapping the outer ide portions' I8 of the/' does-not have to be deformed to produce the lapel portions I9 by forcing the side portions. I8 under the lapel portions I9, as shown in Figs.

3, 4 and 10, and interlocking said' side portions with the struck up portions 20, the front. mem; her will assume substantially the shape illustrated in Figs. 3 and 4.. To improve the appearance of this bust effect, the front II) of the form may also be out outwardly and upwardly along the lines 2| from the lower portion of the V-neck opening 36 and the two V-shaped tabs r 22 formed by these slits 2I and opening 36 can be interlocked with struck up portions 23, as also shown inFigs. 3 and 4. By hooking the portions I8 and 22 under the struck up portions 20 and 23 in this fashion a rather full-bust effect is produced in the front member ID and, as mentioned, this distortion of the front member is compensated for by the sliding movement allowed the front member on the rear member.

In order to adapt the form'to waists or '3b blouses of different sizes or to produce bust effects of different sizes, means are provided for flexing the rear member I I to vary the spacing of the rear member and the intermediate portion of the front member. For instance, an adjustingw cord 24 which is attachedto a hook or tab 25 struck up from the folded end of the form and which extends through] an opening 26 in the hinged end of the form, is formed with a loop 24 which passes through holes 2'! in the front member ID. The length of this loop 24 isvariable by having the cord pass through openings 28 in a slide 29 to which the looped end 24 of the adjusting cord is attached as' shown in de- 7 tail in Fig. '7. Disk 29 is preferably provided I with slots 30 which merge into' the openings 28 to facilitate assembly of the disk on the adjusting cord. Referring to Fig, 4 wherein the back member II is shown flexed so' as to advance,-so to speak, the intermediate portion ofthe front member I9 in which the bust effect is produced, it will be appreciated that by slipping the-slide 29 downwardly the'over-all'length of the cord between tab 25 and holes 21 willbe increased and the back member I I will tend to return to its normal position or straighten out. a result the front member III will assume a position closer to the back member and the bust effect will be diminished. It will also be understoodthat during this adjustment the attaching elastic c5 cords I3 are positioned in the lower ends of the slots I6 as shownin Fig. 3 ,the front member Ill having previously assumed its upper limit of movement on the rear' member II during the preliminary deformation of the front member to produce the bust 'effect. Consequently, if the slide 20 is moved upwardly, as viewed inFigure 4, thus decreasing the over alllength of the adjusting cord 24, there'isa tendency to contract the rear member II or to :pull.the upper eIId'Of 7 5 that member downwardly toward the point at which cord is attached to the front, thus flexing the back member to a greater degree than is illustrated in Figure 4. As a result of this adjustment the bust effect of the front member is accentuated. In this connection it should also be pointed out that the sliding movement allowed the front member on the rear member is only for the purpose of permitting the front member to be preliminarily deformed to produce the bust effect and that this sliding movement performs no function whatever in the adjustaibility or variable spacing of the front and back members for diminishing or accentuating the bust effect. In other words, if the front member original bust effect therein the feature of permitting the sliding movement of the front member on the back member may be eliminated.

The display form illustrated in Figs. 3 and 4 is primarily for the purpose of displaying one-piece dresses and for this reason the front and back members are flared outwardly along the lower edges as indicated at 3! in order to produce a waist line and hip effect in the garment. This particular formation is not necessary in forms used for displaying blouses and sweaters, or the like, as a form used for this purpose may be tapered at its lower end, as indicated at 3P in Fig. 10.

In order that the side portions of a garment on a form will follow the side lines of the form it is generally the practice to tuck a portion of the goods of the garment in between the front and back members, as indicated at 32 in Fig. 6, and, in this connection, it is to be pointed out that the present construction aids materially in retaining these tucked in portions 32 of the garment in the sides of the form. For instance, as

best illustrated in Figs. 3 and 6, when the form is suspended on the cross-arm 33 of a display stand standard 3'4, said standard is positioned between the front and back members It and II at a point intermediate the securing cords I3 and the length of these cords is such as to limit the extent to which the lower edges of said front and back are forced apart by the standard 34. In other words, the standard 34 will tend to force the lower portions of the front and back of the form apart but due to the limiting effect of the tying cords I3, the side edge portions of the form members will be caused to move toward one another and thus pinch and rather securely clamp the goods, indicated at 32, between them. Thus, the garment is held close to the side edges of the form to follow the shape of the latter and no pins or other like fastening means are required.

As illustrated in Figs. 3 and 10, the lower portions of the form are also preferably provided with transverse lines of weakness 35 as it is often the practice of salesmen to display garments, particularly one-piece dresses, by draping them on the floor. If the form is too rigid there will be an abrupt break, so to speak, in the garment at or along the line where the lower edge of the form rests on the floor surface in displaying gar- ;ments in this fashion. This produces a none too pleasing effect On the prospective purchaser, so

that, by providing these lines of weakness 35,

the lower portion of the form can bend along these lines when it is pressed against the floor surface and impart a gradually curved appearance to the arment upwardly from the floor. This produces a much more pleasing effect.

Preferably both the front and rear members l and 1-! are cut away to form substantially -V-neck=openings-36 thereinas this not only facil- 'i-t'ates deformation of the front member in producing the bust effect but by cutting the form members away in this fashion the form "is not visible when a garment is displayed thereon. This feature isespecially adaptable in .a display of garments having low neck lines. It will also be appreciated that the presentformis not limited to use in connection with the usual display stands but it canalso be suspended on ordinary garment hangers. For this reason itis preferred to cutthe shoulder portions of theform members along curved lines so that the shoulder portions of garments can always be properly draped on the form. 'The provision of the V-neck Openings 35 in the form members gives access to the slide 29 for adjusting the bust :effect of the form. While the clamping or gripping action of the side edge portions of the front and back members, as illustrated in Fig. 6, is highly desirable it will be appreciated that the use of two slots 155 and two cords 13 are necessary to obtain this result. However, a single slot and cord may be used for securing and guiding the front member I 0 on the back M, if omission of the clamping feature is deemed feasible.

The bust effect of the front member i!) may also be produced by using slits R in the front,

in lieu of struck up portions'23, for reception of the tips of the small V-shaped portions 22.

While the :form illustrated comprises what might be termed a full length back member II, it is entirely feasible to use a back of considerably less lengthso far as certain features of the present invention are concerned. For instance, substantially only the front 10 is essential so far as concerns the specific arrangement of the slits in .more or less, depending upon :the effect desired.

In thiszconnectiomit will also be appreciated that the adjusting cord need not hav the loop 24*- formed therein. While the loop arrangement is preferred, the shortening of the loop is nothing more than the equivalent of having a length cord fastened securely at one end to the front or back and slidably retained at its opposite end,-pref erably adjacent the collar so that drawing up on the cord will flex the form in the same manner as the form is flexed by shortening loop 24*. In other words, adjustment of the bust is merely a matter of pulling the ends of the form towards each other and various arrangement may be used for thus contracting the ends.

What I claim is:

1. A waist display form consisting of a back member, a front bust member movable toward and away from the back member, said members being. secured together at their top and bottom edges, said back member being pliant and flexible between its points of attachment to the bust member, and said attached top edges of said members being movable forwardly and rearwardly of the form by flexing said back member, and means for forcing said top and bottom edges toward each other to flex the back member forwardly at one of its said edges whereby the intermediate portion of the bust member is moved forwardly with respect "to the intermediate :por- .tion ofsaidbackmember; w

2. A :waist display :formi consisting of .a sfiexible .back member, a, front :bust member-attached ito the back member adjacent its upper and lower sends, said attached upper ends of said members being movable iforwardly and rearwardly-of the form b flexing said back :member, and means for flexing ,oneend of the back member forwardly and rearwardly to-adjust the intermediate portion of the front bust member from and toward the intermediate portion. of said back member.

3. A waist 'displayform consisting :of a flexible back member, a .front bust member attached to the back memberadjacent its shoulder. and waist lines but movable toward :and' from said back member between said lines, and .a contractible adjusting member attached to said bust member above the waist line-of the latter and to one'of .said members adjacent the shoulder portion thereof for flex-ing said back member forwardly and varying the spacing. of said members intermediate the shoulder and waist lines of the bust member. v

4. A waist display form composed ofa blank folded fiat upon itself :along a medial line substantially corresponding .to the shoulder line of the garment to be displayed on the form, said folded portions constituting front and back form membersmeans slidably=connecting the free ends of said members to permit sliding movement of the front member on the back member, said front member having .slits therein extending downwardly andinwardly of the intermediate portion thereof from points onits side edgestoform lapel portions and outer side portions, said outer side portions beingdistortable inwardly to overlap said ,lapel portions to impart abustshape to the .intermediatemortion of the front member, the sliding engagement of'the free ends of the front and back members compensating for the distortion 'isaid :front and :back substantially corresponding 'toithe waist line of said garment, said :front being deformable intermediate said shoulder and waist lines to produce a bust effect and the free end of said front being slidable relatively to the back to compensate for said deformation, means for limiting said sliding movement of the front, and means for varying the distance between the intermediate portions of said front and back members.

6. A garment display form composed of a blank folded along a medial line to form a back member and a front bust member, guide slots formed in the free end of one of said members, guide elements extending through said slots and the other of said members, and means for deforming said front member to produce a bust effect therein, the deformation of said front member being compensated for by the sliding connection formed between the two members by said guide slots and guide elements.

'7. A garment display form composed of front and back members hingedly connected at one end, said front member being deformable to produce a bust effect therein, a guide slot in one of said member, a front bust member hingedly attached at one end to the back member, said hingedly attached ends being movable forwardly and rearwardly of the form, means for holding the opposite end of the front member against movement relatively to the back member in a direction to the first mentioned end of the front member, and means for flexing said back member to move said hingedly connected ends forwardly and rearwardlyto vary the spacing of the intermediate portions of said members.

' 9. A garment display form composed of a back member and a front bust member hingedly connected together at one end, guide slots in the opposite end of one of said members, guide elements extending through said slots and through the other of said members, said elements being spaced apart laterally to receive a form supporting standard between them when said standard is inserted between said front and back members, and said elements comprising means resisting separation of said front and back members by a supporting standard therebetween whereby said members will be flexed by the insertion of said standard to clamp the fabric of a garment between them. I

10. A garment display form composed of a back member, a front member deformable to produce a bust effect therein, a, hinge connection between said members at one end, the opposite ends of said members being slidable relatively to one another, means for limiting said sliding movement, and means independent of the deformation of the front member for flexing one of said members between the points of connection to adjust the spacing of the intermediate portions of said members and vary the bust effect of the deformed front member.

11. A garment display form composed of a back member, a front bust member attached at its opposite ends to said back member, said points of attachment being adjustable to and from each other, a cord attached at one end to one of said members and having a loop formed in its opposite end slidably attached to said front member at a point intermediate the points of attachment between the front and back members, and means for adjusting said loop to vary the distance between the points of attachment between said members and flex one of said members whereby the spacing of the intermediate portions of said members can be varied to accentuate and minimize the bust effect of the front member.

12. A waist display form having a flexible front member having a bust effect, a back attached to the front adjacent the upper and lower edges thereof, said points of attachment being adjustable toward and from each other, and a. draw string attached at one end to said front below the bust portion of the latter and releasably attached to said form at its other end adjacent the upper junction between said front and back, the length of said draw string between its said points of attachment being variable to adjust the points of attachment between said front and back relatively to each other and flex said front to vary the bust size of the form.

3. A garment displa form having a flat waist supporting member deformable to produce a, bust effect, said member having slits therein extending from its side edges downwardly and inwardly of the intermediate portion thereof to form lapel portions and outer side portions, said outer side portions having upwardly directed pointed ends distortable inwardly from the said side edges to overlap said lapelportions to produce said bust eifect.

14. A garment display form having a flat waist supportin member deformable to produce a bust effect, said member having a V-neck opening therein, slits extending downwardly and inwardly of the intermediate portion of said member from points on its side edges to form lapel portions and outer side portions, slits extending outwardly and upwardly from the point of said neck opening forming pointed sections between the edges of said opening and said last mentioned slits, said outer side portions being adapted to be overlapped with and secured to said lapel portions and said pointed sections being adapted to be overlapped with and secured to the member below the last mentioned slits to produce said bust effect.

NELLYE SHAFARMAN. 

